Civil servant bags 35 years in jail over N2.5m fraud

A civil servant with Benin Owena River Basin
Development Authority (BORBDA), Mr. Monday Isiorh Okoh, has been sentenced to
35 years in jail for mismanaging the agency’s N2.5 million.

Okoh, who was a Salary Officer with BORBDA was
dragged before Justice E. Edigin of High Court 3, Benin City by the Independent
Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for mismanaging
over N2.5 million belonging to the agency through multiple bank accounts.

The Commission in a 12-count charge, accused
the convict of using his position to corruptly enrich himself thereby
committing an offence which is contrary to Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices
and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under the same section.

The statement issued and signed by the ICPC
spokesperson, Mrs. Rasheedat Okoduwa, a copy of which was made available in
Abuja, on Tuesday, said the commission’s counsel, Peter Malan, had told the
court that Okoh committed the offence between 2006 and 2007 by paying himself
monthly salaries from the coffers of BORBDA through multiple bank accounts in
First Bank, United Bank for Africa and a community bank.

He was said to have perpetrated the crime in
collaboration with a Cashier in the agency, Enudi Lazarus, who was also charged
to court by the Commission but was however acquitted by Justice Edigin.

Mr. Okoh was found guilty of committing the
offence and sentenced to 35 years imprisonment without an option of fine by the
trial judge

He was sentenced to five years per count on
seven counts out of 12 on which he was found guilty. The sentences will run
concurrently.